The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1887-02-10
down AN BEREAVEMENT
A Passenger Train Derailed Near
White River Junction
And Its Load Of Human Freight
Horribly Mangled.
A Number Of Persons Burned to
a Handful of Ashes.
Others Hardly Discernably from
the Mass of Debris.

CONCORD, n. H., Feb. 5.-The ex
press train that left Boston at o'clocl
last night met with an accident neal
| Woodstock, on the Central Vermont
railroad at about 2:30 this morning
The train started from this city OF
time, but was detained at White Rive
Junction SO it was about an hour and {
half late. Then it left there. 1t con
sisted of a locomotive, baggage car
postal car, two passenger coaches, TIVE
sleeping cars and was running at uSua
rate of speed. When about 200 yard.
| south of the end of the dock bridge
near Old Windsor station, broken raj
was struck. The locomotive, baggage
car and postal car broke away from thu
rest of the train, passing. Over the
bridge in safety. The rest of the train
| was thrown from the rails. 1t contin
ued on the road until it came near the
end of the bridge, but there it ran ovel
the abutment and all of the cars fel
into White river, some fifty feet below
The gorge at this point was frightfu
and when the cars went down there
was terrible crash. AS soon as posi-
bic the detached part of the
train was stopped and ran bach
| to the scene of the disaster
4 l.
rending. Assistance also came from
| people living in the vicinity and every
/ thing done to rescue and relieve the in
| jured. Soon after help arrived it was
discovered that fire had started in the
| first passenger coach and soon the en-.
| tire train was ablaZe, thus adding q
new horror to the already frightful
catastrophe. Those present We're pow
erless to stop the fire and devoted
/ 20
| rescue those imprisoned in the wreck.
The rescuers met another and unex-
pected obstacle in the heat, which had
| become so intense that they were
| obliged to relinquish their efforts to
save the sufferers, and were compelled
| to retreat to a place of safety for them
| selves and to become unwilling horror
stricken witnesses to an awful holo-
caust. In addition to this and to add
to the terrOrs and sufferings of the pas
sengerS the weather was intensely cold
| and the heroic rescuers were hindered
| thereby in their work. No water could
be obtained with which to check
or extinguish the flames. The ice
was several inches thick on the river,
| and there were no appliances at hand
! to raise it. Ira A. Chase, of Bristol,
was at White River junction when the
news of the disaster was received, and
WcuG 10 luC WICK Oi d SDCC1di
His story OF the accident Is as follows:
The train left White River Junction
late, and the accident is thought to have
| occurred about 2:15. A broken rail was
| discovered some 200 feet this side of the
bridge, but whether this caused the ac-
cident or a wheel first broke is in doubt.
The locomotive, baggage and mail cars
crossed the bridge in safety. Two pas
senger coaches, the Boston sleeping cal
Pilgrim and the Springfield sleeper
! the 'St. Adams, F" went off the bridge
at the end, at the right hand side
and apparently turned bottom up in
the fall. Men living near by stat.
ed that when they got to the scene
there was no fire except in the forward
| passenger car, but that flames sOoI
| spread to the other cars and theI
to the bridge. All were consumed
| Twenty six persons as far as known
was taken out alive from the ears, which
were burned. Two of these are under
stood to be Mr.. Wesson, the pistO
manufacturer of Springfield, and EC
Brockelbanks brakeman, but they
died soon after. The two passenger
coaches were we'll filed, and every bertl
in the Boston sleeping cars was occu
pied and twelve in the one from Spring
field, making the total number of passen
gers on the wrecked cars about eighty
This will probably make the number o
dead between fifty and sixty. TIL
bridge was between thirty and fort,
feet above water, which was covere'
with thick ice, making it probable tina
death resulted from crushing and burn
ing, rather than from drowning. Sew
eral were penned up in the wreck VIII
might have been rescued alive, but 70
) the flames. Brakeman Parker who wa
on the forward end of the first passen
: ger car felt the jar and saved his life b
jumping quickly. He secured a cor
veyance and carried the news to Whit
River Junction.
| ANOTHER REPORT.
When the relief train from Whit
River junction reached the wreck til
progress of the flames had been so rapi
: that the bridge and four cars had bee
+ practically destroyed. 4 few burnin
5 timbers were seen and the iron work {
the bridge was scattered over tn
ground. The only house near the seen
was that of Thomas Pingree's, farm
l er, and had it not been for his hospiti
:, bic roof, some of the injured Woul
doubtless have persisted from exposure
-. The baggage and mail cars affOrde
,, accommodations for number of til
S wounded. Charles NJ. HOsmt
+ of Lowell, Mass, who W;
K on the train, states he W;
[ in the Central Vermont sleeping ca
q He saws: can remember tWenty-OI
t others who were in the car with me,
: knew none of them personally. The
e were five ladies among them / W;
I awakened by the humping of the car
Then came a fearful crash and all WI
darkness and confusion. do not I
Il member hearing any screaming, bl
e there were means and calls for help.
: fancied myself pinned down by a Sc
+ which lay across my hips, but l brOl
o a window and in some way worked m
n self out of window onto the ice.
It should think the car dropped fifty-fi,
g feet. The other three cars were al
a on the ice, having broken away fro
t the forward part of the train. A ge
n tleman who occupied berth next
IS mine was struggling in the rui
&c and l succeeded in eXtricati
him. There was also la
in the ruins underneath /
whomIwe succeeding in saving. 1t W
n necessary to tear her clothing off
/. get her out. She proved to be NJ
o. Pryden of Montreal. Mr.. Hutchins
Braintree, VT, escaped and assisted
u saving others. / worked until / was
chilled that l could do nothing mo
In few moments after the crash I
rd swirling flames those una
e. to escape could be seen in |
pe embrace of death. When the fan
br burstout l could see the impFisoI
- passengers either calling for help or
70 sensible. walked, or rather, craw
to house where got some cloth
Out of twenty-five in my car / pers
las ally know that nine at least were saw
ms I saw two of those in my car in
no flames. I remember of a Month
ed trapper, who had been with cluI
.ch Boston, and was accompanied by la
He was saved, but his companion
lost"
to REscUING THE UNFoRTUNATEs.
Sc Word was sent here Immediately
NJ ter the accident and large force
ne men, attended by several physics
VII repaired TO the scene. Forty pers
it is supposed, were killed outTight